Makueni First Lady Anita Mutula Speaking during the World Prematurity Day at the Makueni Mother & Child Hospital on November 17, 2025. Photo by Komu Musango. 
By Andrew Mbuva
Makueni First Lady Anita Mutula had raised an alarm on the urgent need to strengthen maternal and newborn healthcare systems across Kenya, calling for deeper collaboration, improved infrastructure, and sustained support for pre-term infants and their families.
Speaking during the World Prematurity Day at the Makueni Mother & Child Hospital, an event graced by First Lady Tessie Mudavadi, representatives from Machakos and Kitui counties, health executives, and development partners, Anita underscored the stark reality facing the country: “Although some babies arrive before their time, none arrive before their purpose.”
Globally, 45 percent of all deaths among children under five occur during the newborn period, with prematurity accounting for up to 80 percent of these losses. Kenya mirrors this worrying trend, recording over 183,600 premature births annually—approximately 13 percent of all births. The country’s maternal mortality ratio currently stands at 355 deaths per 100,000 live births, while neonatal mortality is 21 deaths per 1,000 live births.
“These figures highlight the urgent need to strengthen maternal and newborn care across the country,” Mutula emphasized.
In Makueni County alone, 1,411 babies were born prematurely over the last period, with 250 failing to survive their first 28 days. Behind each statistic, Mutula noted, are families grappling with loss and frontline health workers who confront life-and-death situations daily.
To address this burden, Makueni recently achieved a significant milestone. On October 28, 2025, the county launched its first-ever Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at the Makueni County Referral Hospital, established in partnership with ENI Kenya. The facility is expected to dramatically improve survival rates for both pre-term and low-birth-weight infants.
Anita also highlighted the outstanding success of Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC), citing a remarkable outcome from two years ago when 512 of 515 pre-term infants survived under the method’s sustained skin-to-skin care. Since then, Makueni has expanded its KMC centers, trained more health workers, and strengthened community-based support for expectant and new mothers.
In a major development for regional collaboration, the First Lady praised the Council of Governors’ launch of the Inter-County Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response Initiative, an innovative system tracking maternal and neonatal deaths across counties in real time. The initiative, running from 2025 to 2028, promotes shared learning, accountability, and more informed interventions.
A highlight of the event was the presentation of incubators donated by the Okoa Malaika Programme through First Lady Tessie Mudavadi, benefiting Makueni, Kitui, and Machakos counties. Mutula termed the donation “a timely intervention that will go a long way in supporting the lives of pre-term and low-birth-weight infants.”
She added that the contribution aligns perfectly with the newly launched intercounty MPDSR initiative, calling it “yet another step toward ending preventable maternal and newborn deaths.”
The Makueni First Lady urged all leaders, partners, and communities to renew their commitment to safeguarding the lives of newborns.
“May this World Prematurity Day be remembered as a milestone of progress—the day we strengthened our resolve, expanded partnerships, and renewed our commitment that no pre-term baby should be lost when we have the means to save them,” she declared.
